Waste World – Episode 51: ReFED’s Sara Burnett on the Future of Food Waste
Why It Matters for ITAD
The strategies driving progress in food waste (bipartisan policy, corporate action, consumer shifts) mirror challenges and opportunities in ITAD/e-waste. ITAD professionals can anticipate similar regulatory pressures, increased corporate sustainability demands, and changing consumer expectations driving demand for responsible recycling and refurbishment. Learning from this parallel sector helps prepare for evolving market dynamics.
On this episode of the Waste World podcast, Gage Edwards chats with Sara Burnett, executive director of ReFED, about why momentum is finally building and how bipartisan policy, private-sector engagement and consumer behavior shifts are starting to move the needle on a system-wide challenge that still sees a large share of food go uneaten.
Key Takeaways
- • Systemic change requires multi-stakeholder action (policy, business, consumer), a model applicable to accelerating e-waste solutions.
- • Growing corporate & consumer focus on sustainability (seen in food waste) will increase pressure on businesses for transparent, responsible ITAD practices.
- • Policy momentum building in one waste stream (like food) often precedes or influences regulations in others (like e-waste/Batteries/WEEE), signaling need for proactive compliance.
